A reader asked, “My husband won’t stay off of his cellphone while he is home. He plays games, texts and talks to his friends. As soon as he comes home from work he sits on the couch and begins to play games on his phone. I am so tired of having to do everything myself. We have three children and he doesn‘t help with chores or taking care of them. How can I get him to stop playing on his phone and start helping me?”

Unfortunately, your problem is more common than people may think. Our technology today has turned into what I call “weapons of mass distraction.”

Cellphones, tablets and computers have replaced face-to-face contact, communicating and interacting with others. I am sure you have probably begged, pleaded and nagged him to stop playing on his phone and participate in the relationship. Being in this type of relationship is certainly no fun. It is not uncommon to feel neglected or that you are pulling the majority of the weight with the household chores and taking care of the children.

You may feel like you and your spouse are drifting apart. If he is paying more attention to his cellphone than participating in the relationship, then it is time to have a serious discussion with him. Your husband may not realize how much it bothers you.

Some ways to deal with your husband’s weapon of mass distraction include:

• Ask to spend some quality time alone with him. Suggest a time of the day for just the two of you. Choose something that you both like to do whether it be biking, going for a walk or watching a movie together.

• Don’t nag him anymore. Clearly state to him how you feel then leave it up to him to change. Tell him that you don’t want him to stop using his phone altogether, you just want him to participate in the family activities. A good way to gauge if he is spending too much time on his phone, tablet or computer is to take notice of when it takes time away from things that are important, such as household responsibilities and taking care of the children.

• Don’t make yourself readily available. Do not automatically be available every time your husband is not playing on his cellphone. Find things you enjoy doing and schedule them when your husband is distracted by his phone.

• Put some boundaries in place and then be patient. When discussing with him how you feel, also let him know what you expect of him in the relationship. If he is willing to listen and work on some of the problems then give him time. If you see that he is continues to play on his phone without taking his responsibilities serious then you may have to decide if you can stay in the marriage the way it is.

Hopefully your spouse will realize how much he is hurting the relationship by allowing his cellphone to take the place of interacting with you and the family.